Crash Landing
by silverfire113
Summary: Amy never thought one storm could change her life so much. She never thought there was anyone quite like Knuckles either. Will she survive her stay on the floating island, or be killed by the island or even Knuckles? Will Sonic ever find her?
1. Confusion

**Chapter I**

**_Confusion_**

Rain battered down in endless torrents against the glass windshield, making visibility nearly zero. The pink hedgehog in the cockpit gritted her teeth as she tried to navigate through the storm.

"Tails, this is Amy; do you read me?"

A short pause.

"Tails?"

All that answered was static.

The small plane suddenly lurched, the rough winds throwing it around like a rag doll in the hands of a two year old boy.

Was that…land ahead? Yes! She was saved as long as she could land this heap of scraps! With sweat pouring down her forehead she eased the aircraft foreword and…

Without warning she lost control and the flying machine began doing dizzying flips and spirals. The natural thing to do was scream, which was what she did.

_I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm dead!_

With a loud screeching of metal against earth she crashed into solid ground. Her head smashed into the control panel and her arm was wrenched painfully backwards. Her screaming continued as the plane skidded along the ground for several more seconds until it came to a jerking stop in the mud.

Panting heavily, she tried to clear her foggy mind, shakily unbuckling her seatbelt and opening the partially smashed door. As she crawled out part of the metal caught and ripped her dress while also scratching her leg. Ignoring it she finally made it out into the pouring rain, letting herself get drenched.

Without any delay the plane exploded, sending her flying off her feet and into a nearby tree as bits of burning metal whizzed by. The hedgehog groaned, rubbing her aching forehead where she could feel a bump forming.

"Why is everything…spinning…?"

Before she could lift herself off the ground blackness invaded her vision.

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"Ohh…"

She opened her eyes drowsily, blinking a few times before she bolted upright. She regretted that move almost instantly. With a groan she laid back again until her brain registered the feeling of being comfortable and…warm. Hastily looking around she found herself in a large room with worn marble walls and pillars. It was…amazing.

"Wow…I wonder how I got here…"

"I carried you."

Her eyes searched frantically back and forth for the source of the voice, panic rising in her chest.

"Who's there?"

Something moved in the shadows nearby and she locked her eyes onto it. After a few moments it finally stepped out into the dim light. It was a scarlet color and from what she could tell had a male face.

But she didn't know what it was. It looked like a hedgehog yet…didn't.

"What are you?"

It glared.

"Never heard of an echidna?"

"A…" she blinked. "That's hogwash, you can't be an echidna. They all died out."

"What are _you_ doing on _my _island?"

She noticed how quickly he changed the subject.

"_Your_ island? I didn't know this _was_ an island. My plane crash-landed here."

"I figured as much…"

"Why did you help me?"

Silence hung over them for a while until he started to speak again.

"Because I wanted to. I won't just leave someone to die even if they _are_ trespassing."

"Well I didn't know I _was _trespassing."

"You are."

"Sorry, it's not really my fault. That stupid storm…"

She raised her fist in the air, and at that moment realized that her wounds had been treated. Her fingers gingerly touched the bandages wrapped around her forehead.

"I'm not exactly the best medic, sorry," the echidna mumbled, turning his back.

"Thank you…so…what's your name?"

"Knuckles."

"I'm Amy Rose. Pleased to meet you Knuckles."

"You must leave as soon as your injuries have healed."

"Why?"

"Because you aren't supposed to be here!"

His voice had suddenly gotten threatening, and she flinched.

"Why not? Do you live here all alone?"

"That's none of your beeswax."

"Don't you get lonely?"

"No."

"But-"

"Get up, I need to take a look at your plane and I don't want you snooping around here."

Amy shakily got to her feet, her legs wobbling a bit.

"How long have I been asleep?"

"A few days. Come on."

He walked over and grabbed her arm with one gloved hand. She finally noticed the deadly looking spikes on his fists.

"W-What are those for?" she asked quietly.

He narrowed his eyes.

"For keeping out intruders."

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Amy looked at the wreckage of her plane, frowning.

"I don't think I'll be able to fix it…why do I _need_ it anyway?"

"Try looking over there."

She glanced at the direction he had pointed, doing a double take.

"No…no way…"

They were in the sky. Clouds could be seen; close enough to touch if one were to reach out over the edge. The white masses of water looked like fluffy white cotton candy to the pink hedgehog.

"You weren't kidding when you said this place was an island! How far up are we?"

"I don't know."

"How long have you lived up here?"

"As long as I can remember."

"Wow…what do you do here?"

"I guard something. I'm sorta surprised you haven't figured that out yet…"

"Well, that's what I would've guessed. So…do you have to stay here…for the rest of your life? That sounds a bit boring."

"It's not. Especially when intruders try to steal _my_ emerald. _Then_ it gets interesting."

She shuddered at his venom dripped voice, though tried to ignore the uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. He had helped her, so he couldn't be that bad…right?

"Emerald?"

Purple eyes looked away.

"It doesn't matter. I'll need to find some way to get you down from here. Soon."

"Why do you want me to leave so badly? It's not like I'm going to try and steal whatever it is you're guarding. I'm not that stupid."

"Sure. That's what they all say."

"Look here! I'm injured, my plane just crashed leaving me with no way to leave, and I didn't its not like I _didn't_ have a reason for flying out in the middle of a storm!" she yelled at him, fighting back the tears trying to escape her eyelids.

The red creature paused (she wasn't willing to call him an echidna yet), obviously trying to see if she was lying or not.

"I do doubt that you're going to try anything while injured, but I'm not going to trust you just because of that."

"How would anyone even get up here in the first place if they couldn't fly? It doesn't seem like you would get very many quests.'

"I don't; and I like it that way. You must promise to tell no one of this place after you leave."

"I can do that."

"Come on, I'll see what materials I have here and then find out what to do about your transportation."

Amy followed him back into the lush forest. Bushes surrounded them on all sides as did trees of all different types. Vines hung from branches. Gorgeous orange and purple flowers were blooming everywhere and you could see glimpses of the now clear sky through the canopy of leaves.

"It sure is nice here…nothing like on the ground. Have you ever seen the ground?"

"Not up close."

"That's kind of sad…"

"Had you ever seen this island up close?"

"No…"

"Exactly."

"That's different though! I mean, it's a floating island for crying out loud!"

"So?"

"The clouds are covering it up more then half of the time! I thought this place was just some dumb old legend."

"Well it's not."

"I think it would be lonely up here. All by yourself…no one to talk to…"

"Who needs words? Action gets you further in life."

"Says you."

They came to a cave and Knuckles walked leisurely inside. Amy hesitated. With a growl of annoyance he turned back and grabbed her hand with his much larger one, pulling her along. Even though she wasn't in the _least_ bit attracted to him she still felt her checks heat up. Thank the lord for pink fur and dark caves.

She tripped on a rock. Okay, maybe dark caves weren't exactly a blessing. It was a wonder how her companion could steer through the winding passageway without missing a beat. Like he knew it by heart. It was automatic to stare down at her hand, which caused her to look at the spikes on his fists again. It made her sick to think of how easily he could punch someone's face in with those hands. How easily he could probably kill someone and not think twice about it.

He looked back when he felt her shiver, frowning although he knew she couldn't see it.

"What's wrong?" he asked gruffly.

"I was just…thinking…"

"About?"

"…Your hands…"

"What about them?"

"They're scary."

He blinked, which was also invisible to her.

"Why is that?"

"It's just…I can imagine how easy it would be to…to…to just…clobber someone; to kill them."

She didn't notice his slight pause.

"I've never killed anyone, though I would if necessary."

"Oh…"

"So why were you flying during a storm?" he asked, facing forward again.

"I…I was mad. And…devastated…"

"Because?"

"Someone I loved rejected me."

Knuckles didn't respond. Silence settled between them and the pink hedgehog distracted herself with her thoughts. She wished she could see his expression but it was impossible in the darkness of the cave, and once more she thought of how unlucky the situation was.

There were so many questions she wished to ask, like if he _really, REALLY _was an echidna. And if he was, how was he alive? The legend she had grow up being told was that long ago, before her grandparent's grandparents, there had been a warrior race with red fur that protected some great power. After a while, they mysteriously disappeared and let no trace. They simply vanished.

Many people had searched for the floating island where they had supposedly resided but none had found it. So it became a legend, a stupid old story that she hated hearing from the elder hedgehogs.

"…How old are you?" she asked hesitantly.

To tell the truth, he didn't look very old to her. She was curious though. What if whatever power he guarded had the ability to make him look really young or something?

He frowned invisibly once more.

"I'm fifth-teen. Why would you care about something as stupid as that?"

"I-I…I just…I don't know…I've heard so many strange stories about this place that it made me wonder if you could like…you know…"

"Stay young forever?" He scoffed. "Yeah right. Immortality is impossible."

Once more silence hung heavily, suffocating the air. Amy fidgeted, starting to feel uncomfortable knowing that she had never held a guys hand for this long. That thought only made her spirits sink when it made her remember _him._ She hated to admit it, but she still was in love with the person who had just recently shattered her heart.

Now this had happened. Which she wasn't very happy about. Here she was, stuck on some stupid island with this strange Knuckles guy. She didn't even know if she could trust him to not hurt her._ He_ didn't trust _her_ after all.

"Watch your step, there's a ledge here," she heard from the darkness.

"Okay-Waaah!"

Amy tripped, dragging Knuckles down with her. Both of them rolled several meters down the sloped path until they slammed into a stone wall. Amy groaned. Knuckles pushed her off and stood, growling.

"Didn't I just tell you to watch your step?!" he asked with mounting fury.

Amy also got to her feet.

"It would have helped if you had warned me earlier!" she countered.

For a few seconds they glared at one another. The echidna turned away, grabbing her wrist roughly and dragging her through the remainder of the passageway. Amy blinked, waiting for her eyes to adjust when they entered a room lit by sunlight that came through a hole in the rocky ceiling. Grand pillars supported the room. They were carved with intricate patterns, depicting what looked like echidnas doing various things. An emerald was a constantly reoccurring image.

"Stop staring and start walking. I don't have all day to baby-sit you."

She followed him through a crumbling doorway and into a torch-lit room. Bits of metal were scattered everywhere; on old shelves and on the marble floor which was probably white under its personal coat of dust. Knuckles began rummaging through the dirty piles.

"Sit over there and don't touch anything," he commanded with an absent gesture to his right.

Amy did as she was told, not really wanting to get on his bad side. As far as she could tell he was quick to anger and wouldn't hesitate to give her a few bruises. Quickly she became bored. The only thing to do was watch Knuckles sorting through scrape metal. This didn't appeal to her, but since there was nothing better to do she did so anyway.

Now that she looked harder, he didn't really look like a hedgehog. For one, his tail was too long. The long quills were different too, along with that red fur color. She'd never seen any creature with red fur before. Not to say blue wasn't strange…

She shook her head. _Don't think about _him, she told herself, concentrating again on watching her companion.

Knuckles had half of his attention of his task and half of it on Amy. Needless to say it was giving him a headache and he wished she hadn't landed on his island at all. He almost wished he hadn't helped her, though he quickly abolished that thought. No matter what others said he wasn't a monster.

"Why does this island float?" Amy asked suddenly.

Knuckles glared. _Opps; forgot to tell her to shut up,_ he thought with dismay.

"None of your business. It won't matter anyway because you'll be leaving soon," he replied icily.

"Is being an inconsiderate jerk in your contract or something?"

He narrowed his eyes.

"I would watch it if I were you."

"You can't just boss everyone around! I'm a person too! Don't treat me like I'm some worthless rock!"

Amy wasn't sure why she was verbally assaulting him. She wanted to say it wasn't because of _him,_ though she knew she couldn't.

"Watch. Your. Mouth."

"I don't have to! You think I want to have to deal with someone like you?! I bet you've never even _seen_ other people! It sure would explain how you're treating me!"

"Don't talk about things you don't understand!" he yelled back, rounding on her and baring his sharp teeth.

The pink hedgehog didn't back down.

"You're so unfriendly I wouldn't be surprised if no one cared! What, did they just leave you here because they couldn't stand you?!"

"I helped you! Why are you attacking me for it?!"

"Because it's like you're not helping me! All you want is to get me off this stupid island!"

"And you _want_ to stay here?!"

"Not like you would care! You never even took the time to get to know me a little!"

"Why do you think that is?!"

"It's because the only person you care about is yourself!"

"If I only cared about myself why did I run out in the pouring rain to save you and then heal you?! Answer that!"

Amy went silent, tears streaming down her face. Without another word she turned tail and fled. Knuckles stood there for a moment, before he growled and chased after her.

"Amy! Get back here!"

"You can't make me!"

She ran back blindly through the room filled with columns, weaving between them until she reached the shadowy cave entrance. No longer caring about stubbed toes she sprinted through the darkness. Knuckles chased after her.

Before she knew it the forest surrounded her. Leaves shielded her from the sunlight and bushes blocked her path more then once.

"Amy! Stop!"

She ignored him and continued running.

"AMY!"

His _almost_ worried tone _almost_ made her pause. Almost. She gasped when the trees seemed to disappear around her, leaving her exposed in a clearing. Carefully looking around she determined the best escape route. She placed a foot forward, yelping when there was a soft whooshing noise.

"Wha-"

Something slammed into her. The small hedgehog was knocked clean off her feet. When the stars cleared from her vision she blinked, focusing on what had bowled her over.

It was Knuckles.

"What the heck?!" she accused, brow furrowed in annoyance.

Knuckles gave her an icy look as he sat up.

"Crap…" he murmured, looking at his arm.

Amy could see what looked like a dart imbedded into his flesh.

"…What's that?" she asked slowly.

"Thanks to your stupidity you could have been seriously hurt. There are traps all over this island; some set by me and others not."

"I don't need saving!"

The echidna grimaced.

"Sure you don't…"

He swayed a bit, pulling out the dart and throwing it aside.

"What's wrong?" Amy asked quickly, noticing how unsteady he looked.

"Orange flower. You saw it near the plane crash. Get it."

"But-"

"Now!"

She scrambled to her feet, clumsily running off into the undergrowth, albeit a little more carefully then before.

Why had he saved her like that? It had probably given her a few bruises though she wasn't complaining. No one had ever risked themselves for her before. Especially not _him_.

She warily continued, soon finding herself back at the site of her impressive crash. The orange flowers were just as she remembered them; beautiful as they swayed in the slight breeze. If she hadn't been in such a hurry she might have stopped to simply watch them. With no time to spare though she dashed forwards, picking several of the plants quickly.

Standing and turning she headed back into the brush, pausing for the first time.

"Where exactly…did I leave him?" she asked herself, worry creasing her brow.

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**Cliff hangers are fun.**

**Okay, I did not start this story recently I actually began writing it quite a long time ago. I really like it so I decided to share. If you guys like it, I'll continue it.**

**Yes, I'm stuck on my other stories...sadly. Headlock is giving me a headache and Cuts, Burns, And Bruises is shortly postponed so I can read some of Reverse.**

**The timeline of the story is sort of strange. This is before Sonic the Hedgehog three and yet Amy is older...**

**I like all Knuckles pairings (although I don't prefer things like SonicXKnuckles...) and the only reason this is AmyXKnux is because I didn't know about Julie-Su or Tikal at the time. My only problem with RougeXKnux is: What would their kid look like?!**

**I think you all know who _him_ is lol I have nothing against SonXAmy. It just seems like Sonic always pushes her away.**

**Please Read and Review if you want this story to continue. No reviews, no more chapters because it discourages me.**

**Have a wonderful day =)**

-Silverfire113


	2. Lost

**Chapter II**

**Lost**

Amy clutched the flowers tighter then she had been before, biting her lip.

_He could die if I don't hurry. But where…what if I run into a trap again? That would just make it worse for Knuckles…_

She set her jaw in determination, stepping forward into a direction that she didn't know was right or wrong. No matter what she had to find him. It would be her fault if he died. Everything was always her fault.

"I've been such a jerk! How could I take out my anger on Knuckles like that?! Urgh!" she scolded herself, wanting to pull out her quills.

Right now he needed her and all she could do was get lost?! She felt stupid and useless. People were always saving her! If there was really no worth to her why not just let her die?!

Wiping away her tears she continued on with determination. Knuckles was depending on her. Since it was her fault, she had to put things back in place.

She smiled triumphantly when she spotted the clearing ahead, quickening her pace.

"Knuckles!" she called, skidding to a halt.

Where was he? Hitting herself on the forehead she groaned, panting heavily.

"Wrong clearing…"

Why did the stupid island have to be so big?! She started running again, wishing she had better stamina.

_Please, _please_ be around here…_

There was another clearing to her left. The hedgehog turned sharply and pulled to a stop once more. She almost smiled with her success, though didn't due to circumstances.

"Knuckles! I got the flower!" she said, kneeling next to him.

He didn't reply.

"Hey…Knuckles? Can you hear me?"

Her voice had gone quiet, fear pricking at the back of her mind.

"This isn't funny! Come on, stop it!"

There was no movement. No gruff voice and no threatening fists. The echidna just…lay there.

"Please don't be…don't be…"

Her hand rested on his chest right under the curious crescent birthmark he possessed, desperately hoping to feel _something_.

She exhaled, releasing the breath she didn't know she had been holding. He was alive, though his heartbeat was faint.

"Knuckles? Please answer…I don't know what to do…" Amy pleaded.

"...ust…to…me…" Knuckles said almost too quietly to hear.

"O-ok…"

She handed him one orange flower, helping him sit up. Without hesitating he ate the flower stem and all. His grimace at the taste would have been funny if Amy hadn't been so worried she would have resorted to feeding it to him mouth-to-mouth. This thought made her grimace also.

"…ank…uo…" he mumbled.

He slumped over sideways, his head resting on her shoulder. A shocked yelp escaped her.

"Um…Knuckles? Knuuuuckles?" Amy asked with a bit of embarrassment tinting her voice. "Are you awake? Hey…Knuckles?"

Like before he didn't answer. She was relieved though to find that he seemed to be breathing easier. The peaceful look on his face made her smile her first real smile for the last few days. The hedgehog blinked.

"Now what am I supposed to do? I guess it would be wise to head back to the cave. Looks like it's getting dark outside…."

Carefully pushing Knuckles away for a moment Amy stood up.

"I wonder if you're very heavy…" she murmured to herself, shrugging.

Reaching down she grabbed hold of both of his hands. She ignored the spikes and pulled.

"Ah…looks like…you _are_ heavy…" she groaned.

Needless to say it was a long trip back to the cave.

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Amy sat and stared. She stared some more. Maybe a little more staring wouldn't hurt? Finally she blinked and rubbed her eyes, sighing a sigh full of tiredness.

Knuckles hadn't woken up yet. The pink hedgehog had had to go out the next morning to search for food. She counted herself lucky that she had managed to somehow avoid traps and in the process find plenty of fruit. Especially grapes. Amy couldn't say fruit was her favorite food though a meal was a meal.

"I really wish you would wake up…I'm not sure what to do with you, you know? I mean, I've helped heal some people before this but…never poison…"

Just like she expected there was no reaction from the red furred echidna. She sighed again, suddenly placing a hand on his forehead just in case. Pulling back in alarm the hedgehog frowned.

"Why's your head so hot?" she asked him, expecting the empty silence of the room. "Argh! I hate this place!"

"Stop…yelling…"

She jumped, head snapping around so fast she knew she was going to get whiplash later.

"K-Knuckles! You're awake!" she exclaimed, crawling over and smiling.

"Too…loud…"

"Sorry…"

The echidna finally opened his eyes, glancing over at her with his purple orbs. Amy hadn't realized how much she had missed the color.

"You've been asleep for a whole day. Did that poison do it?"

"No…that flower has some nasty side effects…" he mumbled, blinking slowly.

"…Like what?"

"Fever, nausea, dehydration; those are all possibilities."

"Hey, at least I know how to deal with those things. Poisoning is out of my league."

"Whatever."

Amy looked away in slight embarrassment.

"I'm…really sorry for…for being such a jerk. I was just so upset about…some things that I took it out on you. Because of me…you got hurt…"

Knuckles laughed, sounding like he was choking and making Amy's eyes widen with worry.

"Doesn't matter; I'm not dead."

She frowned.

"Guys are so simple-minded."

"Hey, watch it."

"You know, for a simply-minded guy you aren't so bad."

"Thanks," he said sarcastically, turning his back to her.

"Your head has really hot…I'll go get some water…"

"Do you know where that is?"

"Er…"

"When you leave the cave, go left until you reach the large tree with a hole in it. Watch out for the trap disguised as stump; just don't run in to it. Right after that you should reach a small stream," the echidna directed.

"Okay. I'll make sure to look out for that."

With a smile she stood and brushed some dirt off of her red dress, noticing the rip in it with a frown. When had that happened? Visions of fire and an explosion flashed through her mind and she shivered. Oh yeah; the plane crash.

"…Or you could just stand there."

His voice startled her, and she quickly turned towards the exit in embarrassment.

"Yeah, I'm going. Just…don't move."

True to her word she quickly left the dim interior of the cave. She stepped out into the open, squinting through the bright light and looking to her left. _Look out for stump. Look out for stump,_ she told herself. The object of worry wasn't really too outstanding. It looked like…well, it looked like a stump.

She carefully avoided it and continued towards the supposed stream. The sound of water running over small pebbles caught her attention. Smirking in triumph she headed towards the needed liquid, easily dodging around low bushes and branches.

The pink hedgehog quickly reached into a pocket in her dress and drew out an empty canteen she had stored there for emergencies. Looks like it finally would be useful for something…

The stream water was clear and she took a sip of it herself; it was rather hot out. Soon the canteen was full. Carefully she stood and capped the container, heading back the way she came. This wasn't _so_ bad she supposed…At least Knuckles was _somewhat_ nice and not _totally _hostile like she had thought at first.

But he wanted her to leave…why? She hadn't done anything wrong had she? It wasn't like it as _her_ fault she had crash landed on his island…

So absorbed was she in her thoughts that she didn't notice as the tip of her shoe knocked against the normal looking tree stump. She screamed as a net seemed to come out of nowhere from beneath her, effectively suspending and trapping her.

Okay…this sucked. Swinging back and forth with your legs bent up and your arm twisted around wasn't exactly her idea of comfortable.

Right when she was starting to like this place a little too! Destiny hated her…the hedgehog sighed, gazing at the surroundings with her green eyes. Drat. How could she get out of this one? Knuckles needed her help and all she had done was get herself caught in a stupid trap! Why were there so many anyway?!

"I told you to avoid that…"She looked down so fast that she knew that whiplash from earlier was going to get worse. Knuckles stood below her with an amused expression on his face. Amy thought he should be annoyed by now. "Somehow I knew you were going to get into trouble so I followed you…guess I was right."

He jumped into the air and in one fluid motion punched straight through the tree branch that the net was tied to. With a yelp Amy fell to the ground.

"Owww!" she complained, crawling out of the trap while rubbing her neck.

"Be more careful. Next time I might not be around to save you," Knuckles said with a smirk. Amy scowled.

"Here; I _did_ manage to get some water for you."

She stood, offering him the canteen that had caused all this trouble. Subconsciously she kept at a slight distance; he wasn't even feeling well and he could still pull off such a move. It took all of her willpower to resist shivering.

"Thanks, I guess." He took the water container with a slight nod.

"No, thank you," Amy replied, smiling uneasily.

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Tails used his wrench to tighten the screw on his plane, wiping sweat away off his forehead. He looked up when he felt the wind caused by something speeding by and smiled.

"Hi Sonic!" he greeted.

The blue hedgehog smirked. "Hey. You know, I was wondering; have you seen Amy lately? I haven't been able to find her anywhere."

The two tailed fox looked away nervously.

"Well…"

Sonic's gaze was intense as he stared at his friend.

"She took up a plane…I haven't heard from her since, but she sounded really upset about something…"

Silence was immediate as Sonic blanched, mouth hanging open.

"When…"

"The night of that big storm-"

"She could be hurt! Tails, we have to go look for her! Come on!"

Sonic jumped inside the newly repaired aircraft and Tails climbed into the cockpit with a worried expression. _'If Amy is hurt…it'll all be my fault!'_ he thought with despair.

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Knuckles watched Amy out of the corner of his eye. She had become distant within the past hour; as if afraid…he pushed the thought away. So what if she was afraid of him? That was how it was supposed to be.

Not to mention his horrible headache and he felt like he was roasting alive. The water hadn't been very effective…He stumbled slightly when his vision blurred. _'Stupid! I shouldn't have followed her out here, it only made things worse!'_ he scolded himself. She had been in trouble though…Knuckles shook his head, trying to make his worry vanish sooner then it was. It didn't matter!

"Um…Knuckles? You don't look very good…" Amy said quietly from behind.

"Hm, you think?" he snapped. Why did everything he said have to come out so roughly…

She stared at him with those stupid fear filled green eyes. He hated that.

"I…I just…it's my fault, isn't it? I'm sorry…I'm sorry that I crashed here. It would have probably been better if it had been the ocean, then-"

Knuckles spun around and grabbed her by the shoulders, glaring at her almost viciously.

"Don't think that kind of thing! If you had crashed in the water you would have died; no one needs to die because of something stupid like that!" he growled out.

The hedgehog gazed back with wide eyes. He'd frightened her again…Knuckles sighed, releasing her.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

"No…it's okay."

At least she wasn't talking about such things as dying anymore. That was…good.

"You can sleep here. It's quiet, so…" he trailed off as he gestured at the smallish (compared to most of the other areas) room. A bit of sunlight streamed in through a small window but the floor was bare. "I can show you where you can find some leaves to sleep on."

"Thank you, but shouldn't you be resting also?"

"I'll be fine, but we've both had a rough day. Let's just get you a place to sleep for now so I can rest easy."

He failed to notice Amy's faint smile when she heard the concern in his voice. It was a tiny smile, after all.


	3. Worry

**Chapter Three**

**Worry**

Knuckles awoke with a start. He looked around the room to check if there was anyone there.

That was weird…He could have sworn…

Slowly the echidna stood, wobbling slightly. He leaned against the wall and closed his eyes. This was not good…

_I should go back to sleep…it was probably nothing…nothing…_He blinked. Was it just him or was he repeating himself? Had that wall always been that…fuzzy looking?

Before he could really think about it his vision blacked out.

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With a yawn Amy sat up, stretching her arms out as sunlight fell around her. Surprisingly, she'd actually had a good night's snooze. The leaves Knuckles had shown her had been very…pillow-like and made a good mattress and blanket at the same time. Not like she needed the blanket, it being so hot and all…

"Well, I guess I better go find Knuckles…where did he say he was sleeping again?" Amy asked herself, tapping her chin with one finger. "Somewhere down this corridor I think…"

She set off at a steady pace, smiling to herself. A nice rest made all the difference on her mood.

"Knuckles? Are you awake?" she asked, peering around the corner. She froze. "Knuckles?"

That didn't look very comfortable…He was sprawled out on the ground with his face in the dirt.

"'Hey…Knuckles? Wake up…"

The hedgehog knelt down next to him, shaking him slightly.

"Seriously! Heeellooo!" she yelled in his ear.

He stirred slightly, blinking one eye open.

"You look good in purple…" he murmured.

Amy stared at him.

"…What?"

"Purple…were you always that color?"

"Knuckles…I'm not purple."

"You aren't…you look…purple…"

"I think there's something wrong with you…you can understand what I'm saying, right?"

"Of course I can Abbie."

"My name is Amy, Knuckles," she corrected with a frown.

"I knew that…you're Amelia…"

Amy sighed, deciding that it was a lost cause. What was she supposed to do in this situation?

"Did you not get any sleep last night or something?"

Maybe he was delirious? She was about to reach out to touch his forehead but he grabbed her wrist. Amy winced.

"Ow…Knuckles, that hurts…please let go!"

His grip tightened and she cried out in pain. Finally she managed to pull her arm away.

"Don't touch me," he growled out lowly. Amy flinched back.

"I'm trying to help you!"

"Just leave me alone…I'm…I'm…fine…" he said slowly, stuttering out the last bit. Once more he closed his eyes.

She sat for a moment, watching him while she rubbed her wrist…it had felt like it would have been so easy for him to break it in two. Another shiver escaped her.

But…once more she reached out, this time managing to put her hand against his forehead. Amy bit her lip.

What could she really do? She had no medicine…unless…

Maybe…just maybe the medical supplies in the plane hadn't been damaged! They had been in a thick metal box, so…

She stood, determination set on her face. It was time for her to pay him back for saving her. This was _her_ chance to save someone else!

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"I can do this…" she told herself as she walked carefully through the forest. "Just remember…near the orange flowers…"

Before too long she found herself standing next to the plane. The hedgehog couldn't help but stare at it for a bit, thinking how lucky she had been. So lucky that Knuckles had been there…

After a few minutes of rummaging around she found what she had been looking for. Her first aid kit! Perfect! With this she could cure Knuckles' fever and make sure her own wounds didn't get infected!

"Yes!" she exclaimed, jumping up in the air. Quickly she scrambled out of the metal pile and back into the lush greenery.

A few birds sang overhead and the orange flowers seemed to wave at her as she passed.

She could do this. Well, actually, she _had_ to do this. Maybe he wouldn't think she was so worthless if she accomplished this task. It had to work.

Somehow…she felt sorry for the red echidna. Even if he talked roughly and was kind of scary…it was almost like he didn't mean to do it. It just sort of…came out that way.

Maybe…maybe he just needed a friend…

Amy laughed at herself. What a silly notion! He'd already said he didn't need anyone _or_ want anyone and it wasn't like she could make a friendship work anyway! It just wouldn't…They were both too…stubborn.

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She sighed, leaning back against the cold stone wall. It was exhausting having to take care of herself and Knuckles' at the same time when it was hard enough finding her way around. It was constantly _'Where was that stream again?'_ and _'I wonder if I've left him alone for too long…'_ or _'Is this medicine actually working?'_

A few times he seemed to be actually thinking clearly. He'd tell her some necessary facts about the island. Then he'd always lapse back into delirium and start spouting nonsense. And he kept forgetting stuff. Her name was one of those things, though he always called her something that started with an A.

Like that one time when he had called her Albert.

Other times he'd attack her and not let her near him. She'd learned to avoid him around then or suffer a new row of bruises. Maybe he just forgot who she was and thought she was going to steal whatever it was he was supposed to be guarding?

It had been four days since the day she'd found the medicine. During that time all she'd been able to do was sit around. At least his fever seemed to have lessened…

Amy sighed. Now if only she could get some sleep before she also fell ill. That would be just splendid on top of everything else.

Still…he couldn't say she didn't do anything. That was really all she was going for. She didn't care about him. Not at all…

"Amy…?"

She started, surprised to actually hear someone saying _her_ name. The hedgehog turned her head to stare at Knuckle, surprised to see him staring back.

"What happened…?" he asked slowly, sitting up. "I feel like I got run over by a boulder or something…"

"You had a fever and I took care of you," she replied with a yawn.

He paused.

"…You did?"

"Yeah," she said, smiling at him.

He noticed the bruises on her arms and froze.

"…What happened to your arms?"

Amy laughed uneasily, covering up the ugly purple and yellow marks with her hands.

"I fell down a lot in that cave when I went out to get food. It's not a big deal."

She could tell he didn't quite buy it and when he opened his mouth to speak she interrupted him.

"It's not like they hurt at all. I'm used to falling down. You know; clumsy me!"

Knuckles went silent and she watched as his eyes narrowed ever so slightly. Then he sighed.

"…Thank you, Amy. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't been here…" he smiled, "I guess it's actually a good thing that you landed on my island."

Amy was shocked to find that he had a really nice smile.

"I guess we're even now," she smirked.

Again there was silence. The hedgehog soon got sick of it and thought of something to say.

"You're really good at fighting, huh?" she asked absently.

Knuckles blinked, wondering if that was a compliment or a question.

"I practice a lot…it's not like there's much else to do with my free time…"

"Could you maybe…train me?"

He stared at her, taken by surprise.

"I assume so…if you really wanted to…I mean, while we're not repairing your airplane…" he trailed off.

She was a bit disappointed that he still wanted her to leave.

"I'm just so useless when it comes to something like that…Whenever Dr. Robotnik attacks…"

Knuckles raised an eyebrow.

"Who's that?"

"A mad scientist who's trying to take over the world. I guess you wouldn't have heard of him. Though…If you ever meet him, don't trust a word he says."

"I'll keep that in mind."

"I did get a bit of training back when I was on the ground…Sonic was training me…" Amy closed her mouth instantly, feeling her eyes well up.

"…Sonic?"

"…He…he's the…hero of Mobius…fastest thing alive…" The tears began to fall silently and first she didn't think Knuckles had noticed.

"…You said earlier you had been rejected…was it by this Sonic guy?" he asked quietly.

"Y-Yes…" she said through her sobs.

Knuckles didn't know what to do in this situation. He'd never had any experience with this…

"…Maybe…maybe if you get stronger…he'll…I don't know…" he ended awkwardly.

"He must hate me! All I do is get saved by him and follow him everywhere! But I…I still love him…"

The echidna thought for a moment, then crawled over and sat next to Amy. She cried into his shoulder as she no longer cared that she barely knew him. Knuckles watched her silently.

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"Tails, where do you think she could be?!" Sonic asked, yelling over the wind so his friend could hear him.

"I really don't know! There's a lot of land to cover…she could be anywhere!" the fox replied. "I think she was headed in this direction, but the storm could have blown her off course!"

"It's all my fault…" Sonic said.

"Did you say something?!"

"No! Nothing!"

Tails concentrating on flying once more, though he couldn't help but feel guilty. He shouldn't have let Amy fly when the forecast had said a large storm was headed their way. She'd just seemed so upset…

Sonic sat quietly, thinking how horrible he had been to have said something like that to Amy…it's not like he didn't like her…just…not like _that._ Or…did he? Why was he so worried it was driving him mad?

_'Amy…please be safe!'_ Sonic thought desperately.

Tails looked at the fuel gauge and noticed it was low.

"Looks like we're gonna have to stop searching for today!"

"Alright! We'll try again tomorrow!"

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Knuckles didn't move. Amy had fallen asleep crying on his shoulder. She must have been so exhausted…

He thought back to when he'd seen the plane crash from afar.

_A loud _'Boom!' _echoed through the forest. Knuckles looked up and saw a large smoke cloud visible even through the pouring rain. Something had crashed…something big. He made his way towards it with as much speed as he could muster, somehow managing to not slip on the muddy ground. What he found surprised him._

'Is she alive?' _he wondered, reaching out and poking her. She groaned and moved her head to the side but didn't wake up. He turned to see the plane wreckage not too far away and put two and two together. She must have crashed here._

_ Silently he picked her up as gently as he could, not wanting to wake her up. What would she do if she found him carrying her around? He would attack if he were her, but that was probably just him…_

_ "Sonic…" she murmured brokenly. He looked down curiously. Sonic? A name maybe?_

Well, now he knew who Sonic was. What kind of guy made a girl cry like that…? Knuckles looked down to see the bruises on her arms and he bit his lip. Somehow he had a feeling…

"Sonic…" she mumbled, just like she had when he'd carried her away from the plane. She grabbed onto the echidna's arm and sniffled. "…Don't leave me Sonic…"

Knuckles stared at her uncomfortably. This was…awkward. Was she dreaming about this…Sonic?

_'She must really love him…'_ he thought absently.

No one had ever loved him. Then again, there had been no one _to_ love him. Just a lone echidna guarding something that everyone else thought was just a legend…

He shook his head. There was no need for anyone to care, let alone love him.

Knuckles somehow knew he was destined to always be alone. He didn't really understand why that had to be though…

Didn't everyone need a friend?

* * *

**This is now my favorite line from this story; "You look good in purple." Remember. I'm gonna be using it later :)**

**And somehow this is going to turn into a REALLY long story. It's got too much plot .**

**But anyway, I updated much faster this time around lol mostly because I was playing Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity and I got inspired.**

** Don't worry Knuckles, I'll be your friend xD**

**Kind of an angsty chapter ^^; I feel rather sorry for Amy, but Sonic wasn't trying to be a bad guy is what you must understand.**

**Much thanks goes out to craz4knux, YumeTakato, and Lieven. Though only three people reviewed this time...I'm sort of dissapointed, because I thought a lot of people liked this story at first :(**

**Please review...It really helps. :)**

-Silverfire113


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